ARCTIC ANIMALS ADAPTATION

Arctic animals have to adapt to their home. They all would freeze if they didn’t adapt to Antarctica. All of them have different ways to do it. Some animals can swim in freezing water and not freeze. Two of these animals are the penguin and the polar bear.

  Penguins are made to live in the sea.  The penguin’s big solid bones help it dive into the ocean to catch food.  Penguins have webbed feet, which are good for swimming. Their flippers help them “fly” under water. They have thick coats to keep them warm. Penguins have lots of blubber for insulation. They also have overlapping feathers that are waterproof because their body coats them with oil.

The polar bears white fur keeps it from being seen. This helps it hide from predators, and also protects it. The polar bear cannot be hurt if it is not seen, which also gives it the advantage in hunting. The polar bear has three layers to help them keep warm. The polar bears’ top fur is a transparent, hollow hair shaft. Under the top fur they have a thicker fur. Under that fur they have blubber. The skin under the fur is black which absorbs the heat of the sun. The bears swim through the water to catch fish for their food. They can easily have the water shaken off because the fur does not mat.

Arctic animals don’t want to be cold. They have large bodies, because large bodies make more heat. They have short ears, noses, and legs. Ears, noses, and legs cool you off, and they want the heat so they have shorter body parts than other animals.